Transit-Oriented Development and Active

FOCUS 12 Essays Shifting the Tide: Transit-Oriented Development and Active Transportation Planning in Los Angeles Forrest Chamberlain William Riggs MCRP , Cal Pol an uis bispo Ph ssistant Professor, CRP epartment, Cal Pol an uis bispo Chamberlain and Riggs present an overview of the historical context of automobile dependency in Los Angeles, the current transit-oriented development strategies underway, and the planning and implementation of Complete Street strategies. The discussion illustrates how the city is using these strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the impacts of climate change. os Angeles has the reputation of an auto dependent city. the urban form of Los Angeles. Before the private automobile LHistorically, much of the region was developed as suburban gained popularity, Los Angeles was served by an extensive sprawl, designed to accommodate automobile use. Although streetcar system, established in the late 1800s by powerful real the region is served by a robust public transportation system, estate moguls. These entrepreneurs not only constructed the the majority of the population commutes by automobile streetcar lines themselves, but also residential neighborhoods (SCAG, 2012a). As a result of excessive automobile use, adjacent to streetcar lines (Jackson, 1985). The streetcar the region has long suered from poor air quality, trac system thus enabled Los Angeles to grow outward from the congestion, unsafe streets, and environmental degradation. downtown core, fostering the development of “streetcar Sprawling development patterns have diminished the suburbs” that would eventually set the momentum for the environmental quality of natural areas on the urban fringe. region’s decentralization and sprawl (Bottles, 1987; Jackson, Automobile use has exacerbated the region’s greenhouse 1985; Longstreth, 1998). gas emissions. In recent years, issues around climate change have become paramount for cities throughout the world. From the late 1880s until the 1920s, the streetcar was the dom- Because a major source of greenhouse gas emissions inant mode of travel for commuters in the Los Angeles region comes from automobile travel, cities have a responsibility (Bottles, 1987; Longstreth, 1998). During this time real estate to reduce emissions in their jurisdictions by shifting travel development was closely associated with the streetcar – most behavior. This typically involves limiting development to development in the region occurred around streetcar lines primarily occur in areas accessible by public transit, and by (Longstreth, 1998). The streetcar suburb is not specic to Los accommodating alternative modes of travel through the Angeles – this pattern of development characterized historic design of the transportation system. development trends in virtually every major American city prior to the mass adoption of the automobile. However, few The Los Angeles region has made signicant headway in re- other American cities were altered as dramatically as Los An- versing sprawl and automobile use. Encouraging greater land geles from the automobile. use densities around transit stations, coupled with investments to active transportation systems, has become both city The Early Proliferation of Automobile Use and regional strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. A dense, transit-oriented Los Angeles is a bold new vision. The Private automobile use caught on quickly in the Southern Cali- following paper presents an overview of the historical context fornia region. The 1920s marked a departure from the streetcar of automobile dependency in Los Angeles, the current transit- to the automobile as the dominant mode of travel. From 1918 oriented development strategies underway, and the planning to 1923 automobile registration in Los Angeles County had in- and implementation of Complete Street strategies. creased by fourfold (Bottles, 1987). Sprawl and Auto Dependency in Los Angeles: By 1925, there was approximately one car per 1.6 persons in The Historical Context the region, a level of automobile density that the rest of the nation wouldn’t reach until the late 1950s (Davis, 1992; Bot- Streetcar Suburb tles, 1987). As a result of increased automobile use, residential development became more closely associated with the au- Automotive use has been the primary factor that has shaped tomobile than the streetcar. To keep up with the demand for FOCUS 12 ■ Chamberlain & Riggs: Transit-Oriented Development in L.A. ■ 53 housing, developers had two options: increase density in built- Densely populated cities with strong access to public tran- up areas around railways, or construct housing on the urban sit emit less carbon than sprawling, low-density cities. A 2006 periphery, often in areas distant from existing streetcar lines study found that the most densely populated cities have less (Longstreth, 1998). Developers typically chose the second op- private automobile use and lower greenhouse gas emissions tion. Post 1920, residential development and automobile use per capita than the majority of cities in the United States (Dod- had a “symbiotic relationship” resulting in a high percentage of man, 2009). Increasing land use densities close to transit is con- low-density neighborhoods consisting of single-family hous- sidered as a key strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. es located increasingly further away on the urban periphery However, it is also simply considered good urbanism. Compact (Longstreth, 1998). communities with strong access to transit have greater access to jobs and services than sprawling, low-density cities. Automobile Domination Los Angeles has a robust transit system in place, yet is often The number of people commuting by automobile eventually characterized as a city that is inherently not transit-oriented. The grew to outnumber the number using public transportation existing transit network, coupled with proposed investments, (Longstreth, 1998). As automobile use proliferated, there was creates an enormous opportunity for a more transit-oriented an increasing conict between streetcars and motorists for use region. 97% of residents in the SCAG region live within two miles of the right-of-way. Automobiles exacerbated trac congestion of an existing transit station, and 22.5% of jobs in Los Angeles in downtown Los Angeles, an area that had already been County are within a half-mile of existing or proposed transit struggling with streetcar congestion (Bottles, 1987; Longstreth, stations (SCAG, 2012a; Center for Transit-Oriented Development, 1998). To curb congestion, the city council passed a rigid no 2010). Land use densities and intensities can be increased around parking law in downtown that was met with heavy opposition Metro stations throughout the region. A 2010 study found that and protest, forcing the council to quickly repeal the law much of the land uses around transit stations consist of vacant (Bottles, 1987). This was the rst of many legislative decisions and underutilized properties, including small parcels that do not that entrenched the automobile as the integral component comfortably accommodate development (Center for Transit- of the regional transportation system. Between 1920 and Oriented Development, 2010). The same study concluded that 1950, highways were constructed, streets were widened, local governments need to better coordinate their land use and and streetcar lines were demolished, all to accommodate the implementation strategies to better accommodate commercial automobile (Longstreth, 1998; Bottles, 1987; Jackson, 1985). By and high-density residential development in station areas. This 1944 the streetcar system was scarcely used (Bottles, 1987). will be a challenge in meeting state goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from automobiles. The prioritization of automobiles in the transportation system allowed automobile use to increasingly grow during this SB 375 and Sustainable Communities Strategy time period. As a result, Los Angeles has a whole became more decentralized and suburban in character. Downtown’s The Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act “central place monopoly” (Davis, 1992: 118) was superseded (SB 375) was enacted in 2008 with the intent of supporting by new automobile-oriented commercial districts located California’s climate action goals to reduce greenhouse gas away from the urban core (Longstreth, 1998; Davis, 1992; emissions from vehicle use (California Air Resources Board, Bottles, 1987). Low-density sprawl has largely characterized 2014). SB 375 requires each urbanized region to prepare a the region’s development history (Longstreth, 1998). Both the Sustainable Communities Strategy (SCS), which coordinates city and region now primarily consists of suburban areas highly land use and transportation planning eorts to reduce dependent on the automobile. Although suburbanization and vehicles miles travelled over a 25 year time period (California decentralization was exacerbated by the automobile, the city Air Resources Board, 2014). Local governments within each had been following this trajectory since the turn of the 20th region are incentivized to coordinate planning eorts with the century when streetcars were the dominant mode of travel. SCS, typically because of opportunities for state and federal Mobility in a city as decentralized as Los Angeles requires some funding sources (Logan, 2013). form of vehicular travel, whether it is by public transit or the automobile. As Bottles (1987: 14) describes it, Los Angeles has In 2012, the Southern

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